The Leviathan Effect

Mallory Brothers #2

by James Lilliefors

Homeland Security Secretary Catherine Blaine receives a frightening communication from a hacker identified only by the pseudonym Janus. The message is the latest in a series correctly predicting natural disasters around the world—disasters that, Janus claims, were manufactured, not natural at all. And, according to the email, unless the United States does as Janus instructs, another disaster is coming—a Category 5 hurricane that will hit the Eastern Seaboard and destroy the lives of tens of millions of people.

Unaware of the crisis in Washington, investigative journalist Jon Mallory stumbles on a list of seven prominent scientists who have been murdered over the past dozen years. When the person who gave him the list disappears herself, Jon realizes he has unwittingly become part of a deadly chain of events and contacts his brother, private intelligence contractor Charles, for help. Meanwhile, Catherine Blaine has also come to Charles for help tracking down the hacker Janus and uncovering the frightening new weather technology that threatens the world.

Genres: Thriller, Mystery, Science Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Suspense, Fiction, Action

412 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 19, 2013

About the author

JAMES LILLIEFORS is a journalist and novelist who grew up in the Washington, D.C. area. His novels include THE PSALMIST and THE TEMPEST and the geopolitical thrillers THE CHILDREN'S GAME (as Max Karpov) THE LEVIATHAN EFFECT and VIRAL.

For Max Karpov, see https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...

Reviews

[Linda Munro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can weather be manufactured? The following is from chemheritage.org: “Today some climate engineers claim they are the first generation to propose the deliberate manipulation of the planetary environment. History says otherwise. Over the past two centuries dreams of weather and climate control have produced a series of ill-considered and ill-fated interventions aimed at what at the time seemed the most pressing issues of the day: from health and farming in the 1830s, western drought in the 1890s, and fog and aviation in the 1920s, to cold-war attempts to use weather as a weapon, and on to current heroic responses to global warming.”

What if they are wrong and someone can control the weather, causing worldwide natural disasters? What if someone tries to use that technology to blackmail a nation, or worse nations until someone actually bites and pays them off? It’s a frightening aspect, but reading a story based on this fact is even more frightening. What if the technology exists and falls into the hands of enemies of the U.S.?

This is an on the edge of your seat book, with bits of terrifying technology thrown in. An awesome idea.

[Sarah (is clearing her shelves) · Rating 4 out of 5]

29/09 - This is even better than Lilliefors' first book Viral. I'm enjoying his writing more and I've always been a big fan of weather related disaster stories (two of my favourite movies are Twister and The Day After Tomorrow) and this is a great example of that genre.

This book focuses more on Charles than Jon and you get to see a softer, more relatable side of him than you did in Viral, which focussed on Jon. I like Charles a lot more, but it seems that Lilliefors can't give both brothers personalities at the same time, it has to be one or the other, and so Jon's personality seems to have disappeared and I don't really care about him like I did in Viral - which is weird, because I always like reading a sequel that continues the story of characters from the first book (check out my complaints, in other reviews, regarding reading books that are part of a series out of reading order). If this series is going to continue I really hope Charles and Catherine stay together as I was really disappointed at the beginning of the book to find out that Charles and Anna Vostrak had gone their seperate ways because Anna didn't like the quiet life that Charles now wanted after living the life of a CIA operative - country hopping, always looking over his shoulder for enemies and never letting anyone get close to him in case his enemies try to use them against him - it was kind of like a depressing end to the book, at the beginning. To be continued...

30/09 - I was a little disappointed with the ending as they only managed to catch one bad guy, and when I say catch I mean a sniper bullet in the head - so there was no interrogating of that guy. The next guy up in the chain, Easton, had a weak motive that no one ever got to question him about because he was taken out by a poison implant from the bad guys, obviously he did have some incriminating information on Volkov, Zorn or Petrenko (I think that's the right spelling) or they wouldn't have bothered. Inside the back cover it says that Lilliefors is working on the next Mallory Brothers book, I hope that's where we'll learn the real reason behind the weather terrorism, because all the motivations given were weak and unrealistic, and who Janus really is. I also wonder whether that thing with the weather plane pilot, Dr. Wu and Blaine all seeing faces in the clouds is going to be 'something' in the next book, because if not it just seems like a completely unnecessary distraction from the main story *shrugs shoulders*, we'll see.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

**Please note that I received this book for free from Goodreads First-reads**

This was a very cool book. The plot revolves around the use of new technologies to control the weather, and what type of ramifications that has in terms of relationships between governments, as well as the potential for the owners of said technology to make terroristic threats.

Anyone who is a fan of David Baldacci, Michael Chriton or James Patterson would more then likely enjoy this book. Its fast paced and the science is not so technical that it alienates the reader. There were a few secondary plot lines that I felt werent really necessary and created a bit of confusion. However, maybe the author is considering a follow up to this book where those lines would pull through more.

If there is a follow up to this book I will definitely read it!

[Rena · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was sent to me as a winner on Goodreads. This is the author's second book, so I went to the library to read his first one, Viral, before getting to this. I actually liked this book a little better than the first, so I was pleasantly surprised. The premise was really good and I like the science aspect. It brings up a lot of questions. Since this is an advanced copy, I'm not sure if the author would be adding any info if this weather stuff is really being studied by our government or other private research. I would be curious to find out. The story is well-written, very thrilling. The ending is a little ambiguous, there may be more in-store.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hollywood, are you listening? This book would make a great movie!

A hidden organization speaking through a super hacker called Janus has learned to manufacture natural disasters. This ability has been demonstrated to a small group of people in powerful positions, in the US government, one of whom is Homeland Security Secretary Catherine Blaine. Meanwhile ex-CIA agent Charles Mallory is concerned with the dangerous situation that his brother Jon, an investigative journalist, has become involved in. Jon has been researching the connections between seven scientists who have all been murdered and whose names were on a list that had been given to him by a source, who is now missing. Blaine and Charles Mallory discover that they each have different pieces of the same puzzle and join forces to try and solve it. They try to work quickly, their incentive; a giant, manmade hurricane named Alexander that is aimed straight at Washington DC.

Lilliefors has crafted a fast paced thriller that hooks the reader early on and never lets go. I would recommend this book to all fans of the genre and plan on looking for his previous book VIRAL.

[Elizabeth A · Rating 1 out of 5]

Don't you just hate when you settle in with a pot of tea and a new book and the book lets you down? I was in the mood for a thriller, a fast paced story that would keep me turning the pages, but this was not it. It should have been. It's got a great premise, but I simply do not understand all the rave reviews. Color me not thrilled. I was bored and bailed on page 42.

[Jeffrey · Rating 1 out of 5]

I got 3/4s of the way through this book, and found I just could not pick it up anymore. I just didn't care about anything that was happening. I think the concept of weather manipulation is fascinating, the "intrigue" and politics in this book was boring.

I certainly is no thriller.

[Charity · Rating 5 out of 5]

I won this book in a giveaway on GoodReads.com, and from the moment I started it, I absolutely loved it. I enjoy the Thriller genre, but I get annoyed at all of the cliches (i.e., Independent, abnormally strong woman with troubled marital past due to her career-oriented mindset and cop/FBI agent/otherwise tough but misunderstood guy spend entire book engaged in sexual tension only to finally give in in a trite sex scene just before everyone else realizes the two of them were right all along about Bob - he is the killer!).

The Leviathan Effect was just the opposite. Although there was a little love story in there for those who enjoy that, it was not overblown and did not detract from the main story in the least. The subject matter of this book is original and engaging, and from the very first page, the reader is drawn into a complicated mystery that keeps him turning the pages.

Although there is some bad language, it is minimal, especially compared to other books in the genre. Sex scenes are not described in detail, which is a plus for me. Sex and swearing are not necessary in books, and usually they just detract from the main tale. If a writer can't find a better way to express himself than through vulgarity, that shows an inherent problem with the writer's abilities.

Lucky for me, James Lilliefors can tell an awesome story without being vulgar or using curse words on every other page. Overall, just an awesome book for this genre and compelling enough to be enjoyed by people who aren't thriller junkies like me.

[Alan · Rating 2 out of 5]

The idea of countries meddling with the weather or other natural forces for military purposes? Intriguing. Or maybe, billionaire evil geniuses manipulating nations by threatening to use secret technologies to create natural disasters for their own hidden purposes? Pretty good, and a tried and true basis for a thriller, although overused. Unfortunately, this book never really got off the ground as a cohesive novel. It read like a series of short stories which, while individually fairly satisfying, were never effectively merged as parts of a longer narrative to form a decent, fluid storyline. The plot got more confused as it progressed and the book ended with a bit of a fizzle. In my opinion, the author set out with a good idea but he failed to bring it to fruition as a satisfying read. I blame this failure in part, as has too often been the case with books I’ve read lately, on the editing. So, two and a half stars for a decent, topical idea.

[Alberto Tebaldi · Rating 4 out of 5]

The narrative is a bit convoluted at times, but I enjoyed the book as a story and a possible scenario about the manipulation of weather as a weapon.

[Tad · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Leviathan Effect is a very interesting type of thriller. It has computer hacking, shadowy foreign agents, and weather control. The use of weather as a weapon is a truly frightening yet very believable concept. Mother nature as an implacable and capricious villain who may or may not be controllable by terrorists manages to keep the suspense ramping up throughout the novel.

The characters of Homeland Security Secretary Catherine Blaine and ex-CIA agent Charles Mallory are exceptionally well-written. From the beginning, it is clear that James Lilliefors is a very good writer who knows how to write characters. Their actions feel realistic. At times it was almost maddening how slow they were to take action, yet at the same time, it was probably a more realistic portrayal of how someone would really act in those situations.

Lilliefors also skillfully mixes a mystery of murdered scientists and journalists with a clear and growing threat to the United States in the form of a hurricane of unprecedented proportions. The merging of these storylines feels organic and well-plotted.

The Leviathan Effect is a highly intelligent thriller with great plot, great characters and plenty of suspense. Lilliefors is a writer to watch and I look forward to his next book. Highly recommended.

I was fortunate to receive an advance copy of this book.

[Lucas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mr. Lilliefors has written a book that I couldn't put down. With the backdrop of "unnatural" natural disasters, the book is as much scary (could this actually happen?) as thrilling (how will it all end?). I found myself getting drawn into the "inner circle" and wondering how the disappearances and deaths of seven seemingly random people had anything to do with the Hurricane heading towards the east coast of the United States. Every time I thought I got a step ahead of the characters Mr. Lilliefors added yet another layer on top of what was already a deep and captivating plot. Whether you like a good mystery book or just looking for a good book to read when it's raining, I would definitely recommend reading The Leviathan Effect.

[Alyse · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought it was an intense read. I finished it in 3 days because it just kept me wanting to read more to find out what was going on. I thought it had a very intelligent premise and the all the background data wove an intricate web that all came together at the end. The whole idea that natural disasters could be manipulated or created was new (at least for me) and I found it really interesting. I enjoyed the book for the most part but only gave it 3 stars because there were a few scenes that were a bit TMI that I wish were not there but they were at least few and brief.

[Lissa00 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. Who knew, really, that weather modification was a real possibility. I didn't and spent a good hour researching it...a clear sign that it was an interesting book. Overall, the plot moved quickly, the content was exciting and I liked all of the characters. It could be confusing at times but that didn't take much away from my enjoyment of the novel. This was a Goodreads Firstreads Giveaway.

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.

An interesting story about how weather manipulation could be used as a terror threat. Loved all the talk about weather since my Husband is a Meteorologist and would be interested to see what he thought about the book after reading it. I am definitely curious if there is going to be another book with how this one ended and would definitely read it.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read if you like disaster movies or books. This would be a great movie. Although if you want a read with in depth character development and history this isn't the book for you.

There is deception, intrigue and murders occurring. Someone is controlling the weather and using it against the President of the United States.

Like I said a great disaster story and a fast moving story!

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this book on Goodreads!
Good, suspenseful read.

[Shawn Fairweather · Rating 3 out of 5]

*This was a free read thanks to Goodreads Giveaway program.*

To summarize....Twister meets Brad Thor? Yeah, I think thats pretty on point actually. The Leviathan Effect has all the makings of a natural disaster like story with the intrigue of a good spy novel. Unfortunately however, the intrigue falls a bit flat. The tension was not always there or deeply felt. The political aspect was very general and lacking depth. The pacing itself was there, but the mounting tension just wasnt.

In order for this formula to work, there has to be a villain to follow, but must also be prevalent and clear. Here, its pretty murky. The science was pretty well done. It doesnt get too far in the weeds to put the casual reader to sleep. The chasing/action component really needs to be matched by the potential for a grand scale political fallout. Here, it just feels very empty and elementary. Lots of potential here though with some more focus on building of suspense from different story aspects.

[Catherine Freeze · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rounded up to 2.5
This is more of political slow burn mystery than a traditional thriller.
The President of the United States and his inner circle receive messages from Janus, a notorious hacker, which promise weather related disasters unless the team agrees to meet certain terms. The Janus lead soon fizzles as it becomes apparent that the hacker is an intermediary for another group. The author introduces such a host of political players - leaders, aides, scientists, angel investors, and bad guys that it's difficult to keep track of who's who. The lead characters might have interesting but their time is the spotlight is eclipsed by the various cabinet meetings.
A caution, the violence is mainly directed towards women and the descriptions may be disturbing to readers.
Ultimately the storm itself is anticlimactic.

[Caseyruth · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'll give it one star for effort. My guess is that 80% of the people who pick this book up will probably like it but I found it horrible because the victim should have been the perpetrator. Knowing what I know there is no possible way the U.S. could ever be the victim in weather warfare.

[Jeff Zeanah · Rating 1 out of 5]

A page turner and a stupid book. Most insulting is the main character is a female cabinet member. Oddly the me seem to have daily responsibilities, she doesn’t. No attention to details, insulting to anyone that passed 8th grade science.

[Alyssa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had been hoping for a bit less politics/spy and more adventure/peril, but it was quite interesting and I enjoyed the female lead. Went back after the fact to read the first "Mallory Brothers" book ,Viral, which I didn't enjoy as much

[Seth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this book started out as an exciting book, but in the end end it was just your run-of-the-mill good techno-thriller, this one about weather manipulation.

[Steven A. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ending leaves you hanging.

[Jenn (One of Many, We are Legion) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received an ARC of this book ages ago through the Goodreads First Reads program. I was not obligated to review the book in exchange for my copy, but I typically review everything I read these days.

I am giving a three star rating in the interest of fairness towards the author and subject matter. My personal enjoyment of the book was lower than 3 stars, probably closer to a 2, but I think that was more of a "cup of tea" preference than it was a reflection of the story. I believe this is because the book is inherently plot-driven, and I tend to prefer character driven stories (this is true for me in films/television as well). I can forgive a bad story a lot more easily if I love the characters, whereas when I don't feel invested in the characters, I tend to not care about the story (with some exceptions, of course - horror movies come to mind).

The basic plot concerns a series of email communications from a hacker first predicting a series of devastating natural disasters, and second, warning the United States that if fails to follow the hacker's instructions, a Category 5 hurricane will be unleashed on the eastern seaboard, destroying it, and the lives of millions. A secondary plot concerns a journalist who stumbled onto information that various scientists have been murdered over the past few years. As you can probably guess, these two plotlines are related and do converge in the book.

As I noted in my status updates, I had a hard time getting into this book. It has a very large cast, but I felt like I only "knew" a couple of them. The rest of them I knew only by their titles. That guy is a doctor. Oh, here's a President. There's the chief of staff. You get the idea. Even the so-called main character was rather bland. I enjoyed the plotline involving the reporter much more than the main plot. The writing was very good, but it lacked heart. It was sterile, journalistic, like reading a very long article in the paper. It was almost too objective and clinical for me to care.

I also did not really like the plot "twist." The reveal of the villain underwhelmed me, as did his reasons for doing what he did. Ultimately, they attempted to point blame towards the Chinese, because at this stage in politics, China would be considered a viable threat, but it turned out to be a Russian oligarch who was stuck in the Cold War and wanted to rebuild Russian to its former glory. He happens to be a billionaire and was able to do this by playing a long game - buying up and building a monopoly in weather manipulation technology designed to create and diffuse natural disasters so that when the time was right, he could effectively blackmail the US into contracting with his company long term to diffuse natural disasters. For a price, of course. There were certain political aspects of it that were thought-provoking, but the book was less a thriller, than it was a game of intrigue, which is not often my bag.

So, to sum up, well written, and honestly a decent story, just not for me. But, because the story and writing were actually good, I do not want to punish the author for my personal tastes.

[David Caldwell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won a copy on Goodreads Firstreads.

This was an advanced reader's copy so it still needs a final polishing by a proofreader.Truthfully though, it won't need that many corrections from the way it stands now.

This a political thriller with weather manipulation at its core.A small group of top U.S. governmental officials recieve warnings about natural diasters around the world that are really man-made events.They come with a warning not to discuss the warnings if they wish to stop these events, not to discuss them outside their small circle.Anyone outside of the circle who stumbles upon what is happening turns up dead or vanished.Can this group stop what is happening before the diasters happen in America?

This is a hard book to review.The concept is good.I liked several of the characters.The story moved well.But something was off to me about the book.It was like eating a meal which you usually enjoy but you just aren't that hungry so you don't like it as much as you normally would.

One of the problems I had was the timeline for the book.Not the story's timeline itself but more of the setting's timeline.The book seems to be set between 2016 and 2020.There is a new president even though he also seems to be strongly based on our current president and may just be supposed to be a name change to protect the innocent character.There are dates of events given but they all seem to be before 2006 which also leads to is it really a new president or not question.

This is a political thriller in more ways than an action novel.But I can never quite grasp which side of the political coin the author is supporting.Being fairly tired of all the political situation, I didn't really want politics in my reading for enjoyment.I would have liked to have seen more action and less waiting and talking.

Another problem I had was the motivations of some of the characters.Even when thei motivations were "explained", they still seemed incomplete.This was especially true of the mastermind behind the whole event.I was never sure who he was trying to help.Of course, the ending was loose enough that there could be a follow up book.If this is the case, I think it would have been more satisfying to have this book end in such a way that you think it is over.That way the characters could find out there is more work to be done in the second book while the reader still has that feeling of closure.

My final quibble was the storm induced images.On this point I will just say: what? and why?

For most of the book, I would have rated this book at 3.5 stars(so rounded up to 4).But with the almost anti-climatic ending with an inadequate wrap-up, I am dropping it to a soft 3 star rating(in other words closer to a 2.75 and again rounding up.)

[Cathy Cole · Rating 3 out of 5]

First Line: Dr. Atul Pradhan had just poured himself a cup of black tea when he heard what he thought was distant thunder.


If you're in the mood for a fast-paced tale of science running amok, consider picking up a copy of The Leviathan Effect, the second thriller from author James Lilliefors.

Catherine Blaine, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, receives communication from a hacker named Janus that throws her right into the depths of a nightmare. This message is the latest in a series that has been correctly predicting natural disasters around the world. Janus claims that these disasters are not natural but manmade, and if the United States doesn't follow Janus's instructions, a Category 5 hurricane will hit the East Coast and destroy the lives of millions of people.

Off in his own little world, investigative journalist Jon Mallory has been given a list of seven prominent scientists who have disappeared over the past decade. When the person who gave him the list disappears herself, Jon brings his brother Charles-- a private intelligence contractor-- up to speed on the story, which makes Charles a very sought-after man indeed, since Catherine Blaine also wants his help in uncovering this threatening new weather technology.

For the most part I prefer mysteries with rich characterization and plots that unfold gradually, but now and then I just can't resist a fast-moving story loaded with lots of action and technology. The Leviathan Effect delivers. Weather has always fascinated me, and Lilliefors's description of the technology developed to control it was not only plausible but downright chilling. Even more chilling was the person holding the purse strings and his motivations for wanting this sort of capability.

Just when everything seems to be wrapped and tied up with a big pretty bow at story's end, the author throws in a nice cliffhanger, promising more action to come. This made me smile, and I doubt that I'm the only reader to do so. It may not be wise to fool (with) Mother Nature, but it's also not wise to gloss over the warnings given by a villain who's proved he can more than carry out his threats. I look forward to the next appearance of Charles Mallory with eager anticipation.

[Daniel Rudge · Rating 3 out of 5]

A political/espionage/weather-manipulation thriller offers a lot of interesting ideas and the potential for great characters but fails to deliver on most counts. I really wanted to like this book because the author is local and any thriller fiction involving the weather piques my interest. In the end, I'd rate it no better nor worse than most standard thriller fare. Basically, if you like thrillers, this won't disappoint, but it won't make you longingly wait for the next installment to come out. The novel focuses on two main characters, Catherine Blaine, Director of Homeland Security, and Charles Mallory, a private intelligence contractor. A third, but important bit part protagonist is Charles' brother Jon, an investigative journalist. I expected the three characters would each be the center of their own plot threads, but once Jon hands off his information about a list of seven missing or murdered scientists that work on weather experiments, he pretty much disappears from the book. While both Blaine and Charles are chasing basically the same thing, neither is willing to share what information they have and thus the reader is treated to several frustrating pages of almost but not quite important intelligence information swapping. (I got the feeling the author was mimicking the current problem of different intelligence agencies within the US government not sharing information.) In the end, all this intrigue leads to a man-induced Category 5 hurricane heading straight for Washington D.C. with Blaine and Charles trying to stop it. The characters needed more development, the intrigue a tad more whodunit, and the conclusion a less rah-rah pro-Democratic President pushing a visionary America. Maybe I'd have liked it better if I hadn't read the book when the same type of President is sitting in the White House and America's outlook didn't feel this bleak. Overall, read at your own risk.

[Jeannette · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book kept our interest for hundreds of miles during a road trip. Best thing about it was it kept us rolling from character to character, scene to scene with a big theme that affected thousands of people and the planet. Good bits of history of climate research here and there. So why only two stars? Because the idea was good - about weather manipulation and science and missing scientists - yet disappointed us by sloppy writing and editing. We were intrigued by the theme of controlling the weather, but the fact that the consequences of trying to avoid bad weather is obviously going to make weather worse didnt get imbedded deeply enough. Such an obvious idea was mentioned a few times but was a side theme, everyone in the book wanted to manipulate the weather for humans only and avoid thinking about the earth's attempts to adjust and balance weather. And why would sensible, high level manipulators, corporations, individuals and government officials all be so ill informed and downright stupid about the science of weather yet able to manipulate it? The author also added in bits of woo woo stuff in the storm clouds which vitiated the scientific stuff. But worst was the female character, presumably the heroine who never really did anything. Yet she was head of Homeland Security and the President's choice for informant about weather things. She was also included in the secret group trying to deal with the threats of weather and security inroads. Why was she so lame and ill informed? She really was a weak point and her boy friend pulled her up a little. The bad guys were sorts naive too. The minor characters were ok, but all together it was a jumble and petered out just like the storm Andrew who was really the main character in the book.

[ashleigh vaughan-evans · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm torn between 3 and 4 stars. It was a solid read, I wanted to know what happened next, but I also found the science was better presented than the characters. So, 3 it is.